Heritage Foods CEO flags value-led dairy shift as supply growth slows
India’s organised dairies collect about 55 million tonnes of an estimated 150 million tonnes of marketable surplus milk. Heritage Foods says the sector must move beyond volume growth as supply expands more slowly than consumption and farmer-income expectations raise procurement costs.
What happened
Heritage Foods’ CEO argues India’s dairy industry must shift from volume to value creation as organised players collect only about 55 million tonnes of 150
Key facts
- India has roughly 150 million tonnes of marketable surplus milk
- Organised dairies collect about 55 million metric tonnes
- 90–95 million tonnes flow through informal/unorganised channels
- Dairy farmer nominal income grew at about 11.5% CAGR from FY19 to FY25
- Real dairy farmer income growth was about 5% from FY19 to FY25
What changed
Heritage Foods’ CEO argues India’s dairy industry must shift from volume to value creation as organised players collect only about 55 million tonnes of 150 million tonnes of surplus milk, amid rising procurement costs, slower supply growth and farmer-income pressure.
Why this matters
Prioritize higher-margin dairy formats, tighter milk procurement partnerships and productivity gains as slower supply growth and rising farmer payouts pressure input costs.
What to watch
- Farm-gate milk procurement price increases relative to retail milk price hikes.
- Flush-season milk arrivals, fodder prices, monsoon conditions and cattle disease developments.
- Growth gap between value-added dairy categories and liquid milk volumes.
- Organised dairies' gross-margin trends, procurement volumes and capacity-utilisation disclosures.
- Private-label expansion and discounting in curd, paneer, ghee and cheese.
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